Second Chances
by MissNMikaelson
Summary: All her life she's lived for other people: mom, dad, Jeremy, Caroline, Bonnie, Stefan, and Damon. Everything she did was to please them, but now she's done and ready to forge her own path, and make her own mistakes and a few unlikely friends along the way. ones her old friends never would have approved of. I always rate M to be on the safe side.
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own TVD or TO.**

**This is going to be an alternate take on The fifth/sixth season of The Vampire Diaries, and the third/fourth/fifth season of The Originals.**

**It's based on a theory I had at the end of season five of TVD.**

* * *

May 2, 2012

12:01AM

* * *

She coughed, sputtered and cried, but no matter how much water she regurgitated she couldn't breathe. Her shirt and lap were soaked through and her vision was all but gone, hazy around the edges as if she were staring through the gloom of deep water.

She was drowning on dry land, on drenched leather seats.

"Damon…" she turned with what little energy remained. Tears poured down her cheeks to mix with the water.

He was panting; she thought she saw something wet on his shirt, but if it was blood she couldn't smell it.

She didn't have the time to be afraid of what that meant for her.

"I know…"

She didn't feel him take her hand. She didn't hear the crash. She didn't draw another breath.

* * *

Bonnie stood alone in the cemetery, rubbing her upper arms. She had been on the verge of freezing for a while; ever since she began straddling both worlds. On one side was the warmth of early spring, but on the other a fall fog drifted between the tombstones.

Tiny clouds rose from her mouth.

She felt the shift before she saw them. It was a sense of being watched that raised the hair along the nape of her neck.

They appeared at once. Dozens of travelers surrounded her, converging as one on her waiting body. She gritted her teeth against the explosion of pain dancing across her nerves.

The familiar voice brought her eyes up again. She breathed a sigh of relief when he brunette ran through the trees at a human clip. She had been afraid Damon wouldn't drive fast enough to keep her friend from drowning.

"Elena," a small smile lifted her lips, "did it work? Are you?"

"Yeah," she sighed. "For a moment I thought Damon was too late…" she looked around the cemetery. "Did he…"

Bonnie blinked slowly and opened her mouth. She didn't know what to say. She hadn't seen him in the crowd of travelers.

"I'm right here," a voice called through the trees.

"Okay," Bonnie nodded. "When you guys pass through me you're going to wake up with your bodies on the Other Side. You need to get back here as fast as you can."

"Okay," Damon nodded.

Together they reached out and grasped Bonnie's hand. A weight settled over Bonnie's chest as her skin caught fire again.

* * *

Everything was on fire.

Pivoting on her heel she saw the charred remains of the car and burning skeleton that she knew was her.

"Did you seriously wear your seatbelt?"

Elena turned to find him surveying the wreckage with a cocked eyebrow. She threw her arms around his neck.

"What are you doing here, Ric?"

"Come on," he spun her towards the gaping hole in the wall. "You have to go."

"But Damon," she shook her head. "I've got to find him."

"You have to go home to your brother," Alaric shook his head. "I'll find Damon."

"I can't," she exclaimed. She had to find him. She had to know he made it back.

"Elena," Alaric took her shoulders in a strong grip, "get out of here. You don't have time to waste. Go," he let her loose.

She gave the Grille one last look before nodding.

Alaric watched her shrinking form as she ran back to Bonnie, and glanced at her charred remains. He located Damon a few minutes' later inches away from a large pile of ash.

* * *

"I can't find Damon," Elena gasped, clutching a stich in her side. She knew Alaric had wanted her to go straight to Bonnie but she had still looked along the way.

"You go," Stefan nodded to Bonnie, "I'll wait for him."

"I'm not leaving without him!" Elena placed her hands on her hips.

"Elena…" A tremor cut Stefan off. He yelled over the rumbling ground. "This place is falling apart."

"No!"

Stefan met Bonnie's eyes. They shared an almost imperceptible nod.

Bonnie reached out.

* * *

Elena gasped, drawing in breath she hadn't realized she needed. She shook off Caroline's arms and turned to Bonnie.

"Why would you do that?"

"I couldn't leave you there," Bonnie gritted her teeth. "He'll make it."

"Who?" Caroline looked between her friends. "Who's missing? Where's Stefan?"

Before Bonnie could answer she began coughing violently; blood flew from her mouth, coating her chin. Arms caught her when her knees buckled.

Caroline and Elena's voices overlapped as they asked if she was okay. Their eyes widened when Stefan appeared from nowhere.

"No," his eyes bulged when he looked up and saw Caroline and Elena.

"Stefan?" Caroline interrupted his string of 'no'.

"I was just trying…" he looked up. There was a mixture of sorrow and guilt in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" Caroline took his arm.

Stefan drew in panting breaths.

"She fell…" he met Caroline's eyes, "… I was just trying to… Damon…" he turned his attention to Elena, "… he's not there yet."

"This isn't happening," Elena shook her head. Tears welled in her eyes. She watched and waited with baited breath.

It was a moment before Alaric appeared, but his reassurance fell on deaf ears when Bonnie vanished from view.

* * *

She knew grief; they were not strangers by any means. To her grief was an old friend, lingering in the dark waiting until it was time to draw her into an all-encompassing embrace.

There was something different this time.

She was numb.

She had said nothing after returning from the crypt, leaving her friends in the living room of the rented house for the room she had shared with him. She stared at the bed until the sky lightened and felt nothing.

Desperation took hold of her. Grief was meant to be heartrending, not numbness. She took slow steps to the window and stared out at the rising sun while pulling the blue gem from her finger.

The ring turned a slow circle as it fell.

She waited for the burn while holding the drapes; she wanted to feel, but she wasn't suicidal.

She stood, braced until her muscles ached, for the burn that never came.

And only after the sun had warmed her cold skin and danced over her arms did she turn away.

In the bathroom she broke open the plastic casing of a razor and with a deep breath she drew the blade across her wrist twice.

Her heart gave a flutter when she didn't heal.

"What the hell are you doing?" Caroline snapped. She flashed into the small bathroom and snatched the razor from Elena's shaking fingers. "You might be a vampire, but that doesn't mean you can go around slicing into your own veins."

A steady stream of water washed away the crimson liquid in the sink.

A deep frown marred Caroline's features when she shut off the water and bright red droplets began staining the sink again, running with the remaining water in streaks down the porcelain. She looked up, meeting Elena's eyes in the mirror.

Rivers of blood trickled down her elevated wrist, inching down the olive skin. Every few seconds it would drip, falling from her elbow into the sink. Elena stared at her arm, growing light headed.

Caroline caught her when she swayed and lifted her friend to sit on the counter. Snagging a washcloth, she lowered Elena's arm under a new stream of water and wiped until she was clean.

Caroline examined the crossed lines as more blood bubbled to the surface.

"Ric?" Caroline bent, pulling the first-aid kit from under the sink. "Bring up the orange juice and a glass."

A part of Elena still hadn't grasped what had happened, so her brows lowered in confusion as Caroline carried on what appeared to be a one-sided conversation.

"Grab one of those muffins too…" Caroline applied an antibiotic cream to the cuts. "Yes, I know they're a little old, but she needs the sugar…" She wrapped Elena's wrist in a clean bandage and took a gentle hold of the brunette's forearm.

"Caroline?" She felt like a small child, trembling on the counter as her mom cleaned out the scrape she had gotten when she fell off Jeremy's skateboard: scared and confused. "What's happening to me?"

She already knew, but like a child she had to be told; she needed someone else to confirm, to tell her she was not suffering from an overactive imagination.

"You're alive," she breathed, "I don't know how, but you're alive."

Caroline leaned closer, as if in a trance and allowed her nose to graze the smooth column of Elena's throat, inhaling the rich smell of human blood racing beneath the skin. Normally the smell of fresh blood would awaken her hunger, but she had hopped into first aid mode when she realized.

"It's because she died human," Alaric stepped into the small space and pressed the cold glass into Elena's hand. "Bonnie knew the minute she touched her."

"Your death was different than the others." He caught Elena's eyes when she looked up. "They burned and you drowned; Bonnie sent me after you."

"But the spell…" Elena shook her head. She sipped the orange juice at Alaric's urging. "It… only supernaturals can cross to the Other Side. I was human."

"You were never human, Elena," Alaric frowned, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Katherine was a witch," Caroline looked up, realization dawning in her eyes.

"No," Elena murmured, "she was a traveler." She vividly remembered the sensation of being trapped in her own mind when her psychotic ancestor took control.

"I hadn't even thought of that." Alaric tilted his head. "You're a doppelganger."

* * *

**Drop a review please and let me know what you thought of this first chapter.**

**It never made sense to me why Elena was so worried about the both of them dying as vampires. Her worrying about Damon I get, but she was always a supernatural, and I feel like she and the writers completely forgot about that little fact during the season 5 finale.**


	2. Chapter 2

**I do not own TVD or TO**

**Elejah88 - I'm so glad you like the beginning. I don't blame you for not watching beyond season 5. I stopped after season 6. I hated the sire bond and as this story suggests I was really disappointed with the way they ended the fifth season. They had this door wide open, even making a precedent with Tyler, and they didn't take it. **

**To the guest who asked about Elena's love interest - right now I'm planning on Elejah but it will be made complicated because of certain events in season three of the Originals that I will keep. There is also at the moment a short affair she has while traveling after leaving Mystic Falls, but I don't want to cause any big spoilers. Just know that there will be complications, and plots can change midway through a story.**

* * *

Elena glanced at the white bandage as she unlocked the door. Caroline's instincts were still so human at times that she hadn't thought of it until Stefan was brought into the loop and saw the bandages, but at that point Elena had refused the instant healing. Every time she looked at the wrapping she was reminded of what she now was; it kept her from doing something stupid like putting harmful drugs into her body, or drinking until she forgot. She was human, and had promised Caroline that she would never harm herself again under threat of a severe ass-kicking; she felt confident the blonde would resort to compulsion first, but she wanted the choice to be hers.

Whatever doubts had been lingering about her living status vanished when she had crossed the town line without incident.

She stepped into the apartment and fumbled for the light as the door shut behind her. The bulb snapped to life overhead with an electric hum, bathing the room in a soft yellow glow. Biting her bottom lip, she surveyed the layer of dust that coated every surface.

She ran the tip of her finger along the counter and rubbed off the dust with her thumb while walking into the bedroom and flipping on another light. A strange sense of anticipation built as she opened the closet and began moving boxes. The simple case Alaric had described was exactly where he had said it would be beneath a crate of National Geographic magazines.

It was heavy in her hands as she hoisted it up and onto the bed.

She sat cross-legged and popped the lid. It was almost anti-climactic seeing the external hard drive, laptop and charging cords. She placed them carefully on the mattress.

Beneath the out of date computer were two boxes taking up the bottom of the case. One held pictures, mostly of Alaric and Isobel. The second was the main source of weight: a sturdy antique vanity set emblazoned with an ornate 'P' and covered in silver vines and a smaller jewelry case with a key in the lock.

Elena glanced at the worldly possessions of Isobel Fleming as she bent to plug in the laptop. It was curiosity that had her opening the jewelry case; she had to do something while she waited for the computer to charge, and admiring whatever jewelry Alaric had once given his wife seemed better than the photographs.

She expected a necklace, not a folded paper bearing her name on top of a gauzy material. She held her breath and lowered the case while unfolding the letter.

Her heart skipped a beat with the very first line.

_To my daughter on her eighteenth birthday,_

_I suppose it's not fair to you, and probably feels strange, hearing someone who's not your mom call you her daughter. I knew that Miranda Gilbert would raise you as her own, and she is your mother, but for those first few days you were mine._

_I wanted to keep you, for months I felt you growing inside of me. You used to kick me at night and keep me awake. I'd rub my stomach and tell you to just wait until you were a teenager because I was going to find some way to get back at you for my sleepless nights: a good grounding, or showing your embarrassing baby pictures to your first crush._

_I wanted to keep you, but let's be honest; my maternal instincts leave much to be desired. The best thing for both of us was for me to give you up._

_I didn't want you to grow up with our people's curse hanging over your head._

_This might sound crazy, but there is a whole other world out there for you. It's yours by right of birth because you, my beautiful little girl, come from an ancient race of cursed witches. They used to call us gypsies._

_You could join them if you wanted, but be warned that it's a solitary life. We can't gather in our own bodies to practice magic, not as long as our curse remains. And we can never settle for long in one place._

_It's a nomadic existence I wouldn't wish on anyone, but should you wish to learn I've left you what you need._

_In the box is a necklace. It's been passed through our family from mother to daughter for generations, and now it's yours. I understand if you hate me for leaving but I hope you'll accept this gift and not throw it away. I myself never wore it; maybe knowing that will help you keep it._

_I hope you've had a good life, Elena. I don't even know if that's still your name, but it's the one I gave you._

_All my love,_

_Your mother._

Elena didn't realize she was crying until she finished the letter and looked up. At some point Matt had entered the apartment. He walked over as she swiped her cheeks and pulled a tissue from his pocket.

She took a shuddering breath as he sat down and accepted the Kleenex.

"How'd you find me?" She dried her cheeks.

"Caroline called," he shrugged. "She figured I'd find you sobbing when you didn't answer your phone."

Elena pulled the device from her pocket and saw the missed calls.

"What's on your mind?" Matt blinked when she thrust the letter in his hands. He read it as she unfolded the gauze. "What happened between this letter and…?"

"Meeting me?" Elena frowned down at the photograph of a young Isobel staring at a bundle of blankets in her arms.

She lifted a silver chain from underneath, the medallion caught the light.

"Maybe she found out she birthed a doppelganger, or she realized leaving was because she wanted to. She was a vampire who didn't care about anything…" She rattled off the reasons. "Take your pick."

"Are you going to keep it?" He asked instead.

Elena swallowed, examining the gift. She knew Alaric hadn't known what was in the box or else he would have given it to her a long time ago.

Her fingers itched to hold the necklace and never let it go. Blue stones glittered in the center of a raised star and wherever the snaking river met in a bend. It was very old, slightly tarnished, and beautiful.

* * *

**A time jump is coming where we skip ahead a year.**


	3. Chapter 3

**I do not own TVD or TO.**

* * *

June 22, 2013

* * *

She hooked her finger under the silver chain and toyed with the pendent, pulling it from side to side as she walked through the sitting room. She had every intention of retrieving sustenance in the kitchen; the afternoon in bed had worked up her appetite. The last thing she wanted was to fall into the habit she had developed when she first came back and eat sporadically. She had grown far too thin those first few months.

Settling on a grilled cheese she moved to the fridge and lost herself in thought as she went through the motions, reflecting on the crazy year.

First Damon had shown up alive after she had gotten Alaric to erase her memory. It had been an adjustment as he got used to her new status and she gave the man she had viewed as a monster a chance.

Then a psychopath had shown up intent on vengeance and thrown them all for a loop. Truthfully she didn't think Kai cared as much for vengeance; it was more about causing pain.

Alaric had proposed to Jo; they had every intention of disappearing the next day after the wedding to protect their twins.

Through it all there had been school, and a niggling sensation that pre-med wasn't the right spot for her. She'd been having that feeling a lot lately; like she didn't quite fit.

She shook herself from those thoughts before she began questioning the future nature of her current relationship and cut her sandwich in two equal pieces.

She reached into the fridge again for the milk and froze. The carton slipped from her grip onto the tile spraying her legs, but she barely felt the cold. Her eyes were locked on the carved black box behind the eggs.

"Elena," Damon came up behind her. He took her hips and pulled her back until they were pressed together. Fingering the hem of his black t-shirt, he chuckled. "Do you think anyone would mind you wearing this instead of your bridesmaid dress? It's much nicer."

He frowned when she didn't make an obvious quip about him meaning shorter.

"Elena?"

"Is this what I think it is?" She popped open the lid and lifted the ancient capsule. She straightened up, tipping the liquid back and forth while turning around. His stony silence answered her question.

"Bonnie?" She sighed when he nodded and told her how Bonnie had brought it back from the prison world. "Were you going to drink it?"

"No," he met her dark eyes.

She lowered her arms to her side and closed her fist over the delicate casing. The question she had been avoiding for months was finally upon them; it hovered in the air, crackling.

"I love you, Elena." He took her stiff shoulders. "I don't want to give up an eternity with you for a few decades, at the end of which we're infirm. Turn again and be with me."

It wasn't the first time he had asked her to turn. The first had been when he came back and suggested it as a way to restore her memories after it became clear Alaric couldn't; her answer had been a resolute no. It was a complete fluke when she visited Jeremy and the anti-magic barrier had removed the compulsion.

She had told him she didn't want to sacrifice her humanity for something she wasn't entirely sure of, but now, standing half-naked in his kitchen, she knew that wasn't the case.

"I don't want to be a vampire Damon. I want to be human, to build a human life somewhere," she shook her head, backing up.

"Do we have to have this conversation now?" He watched her pace away.

"Yeah," she eyed her rapidly cooling sandwich, "we have a shelf life Damon…" she blinked back a few tears, "… and I think we've reached it."

"No," he shook his head, refusing to let it go, "we're meant to be together Elena."

"How are we supposed to do that, Damon?" A tear rolled down her cheek. "One of us would have to change and neither of us wants to." She looked down at the cure in the palm of her hand. "Even if one of us does we'll wind up hating the other…"

She gasped when he moved at vampire speed, shoving his bleeding wrist into her mouth. Her eyes were round as she gagged on the metallic liquid.

"I'm willing to risk you hating me for a few decades," he pulled his wrist from her mouth and reached for her jaw.

Elena pushed with one hand and sent him flying across the kitchen. She spat the blood from her mouth and fixed him with a glare.

"How did you…?"

"Isobel left me a few things," she fingered the necklace, remembering the files that had been on the hard-drive, protected behind a password that had been her birthday. "I've learned from it, so let's get something clear Damon: I wouldn't hate you for decades," she drew in a deep breath, squaring her shoulders. "If you turn me against my will I will hate you for eternity."

* * *

"Don't you think this is a little impulsive?" Caroline leaned in the door with Jeremy.

"Yes," Elena nodded without looking up. She didn't have time to waste if she was going to leave before he got back; Alaric could only distract Damon with fake best man duties for so long. She rolled up a pair of skinny jeans until they were half the length of her forearm and placed them in a packing cube. She had thought it would be hard, deciding what to take and what to leave, but after humanity free Elena had burnt her house to the ground she only had so many clothes; with Caroline's packing tips it was easy enough to fit them all in one travel backpack.

"Then why are you doing it?" Caroline moved inside and started to help. She understood the break-up, she'd been expecting it, but Elena's covert plans had her stumped.

"Because," she placed the full packing cubes in the bag, "I feel like I need to be impulsive right now." She double checked the travel documents in her purse; she and Caroline had planned a trip at the end of the semester so the paperwork was in order, but life had kept them from going.

"Do you need money?" Caroline came out of the bathroom with a toiletry kit. "You're talking about an extended trip, and all of your plans are basically being pieced together. It's gonna be pricey, and I won't be there to use compulsion."

"I'll be fine, don't worry about the money." She could feel their eyes widening at her dismissive tone and sighed. "Humanity-free Elena may have compelled a nice stockbroker to make investments and then taken all of the profits and placed them in a high-yield savings account which has been sitting untouched since opened."

Categorizing the periods of her life helped her to cope and move on from the dark acts that had plagued her life; there were so many versions of herself.

There had been young naive Elena; the carefree teenager who was involved in everything. There had been orphan Elena, remote and withdrawn; she had worn an obligatory smile and pretended that everything was fine. There had been doppelganger Elena; the supernatural pawn determined to save her friends even if it meant martyring herself. There had been vampire Elena; desperate to go back to the mortality she had left behind. There had been emotionless Elena: cold, calculating and vicious.

Now she was human Elena again.

_No,_ she thought. Her eyes caught a glimpse of her necklace in the mirror. She wasn't exactly human anymore; she never really had been. She supposed she was traveller Elena now, but unlike her gypsy ancestors she wouldn't be wandering the world in search of a home.

She was going to seek herself. She was going to learn how each version fit together. She was Elena Gilbert; loyal friend, daughter, niece, sister, doppelganger, gypsy…

She zipped her bag and looked up to her brother and friend whey they interrupted her thoughts and asked how much she had squirreled away.

"I'm not sure," she admitted with a small shrug. "It was close to a million when I made the deposit. It's enough that if I'm responsible I'll never have to work again."

Elena pulled out her phone and logged into the bank after checking her flight details.

Caroline whistled when she saw the screen.

"You'll never have to work a day in your life."

"She'll want to," Jeremy shook his head. He knew his sister. "You're gonna want a sense of purpose."

"Eventually," Elena agreed, "but for now I wanna be rootless." A sense of adventure began to grow in her chest. "I want to find out where I fit because it's not here."

* * *

Several hours later Elena sat in her seat on the plane fingering the cure she had told security was perfume. Unsure why she had taken it, she tipped her head back after tucking it away and closed her eyes; blissfully unaware of the massacre happening at home.

* * *

**The next handful of chapters will be shorter and written as e-mails.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I do not own TVD or TO.**

* * *

**FROM: egilbert whitmore. edu**

**TO: cforbes whitmore. edu**

Dear Caroline,

The locals say that the rumors about year round rain are not true and that I've just arrived during a rainy patch. They've still cautioned me to carry an umbrella at all times, and I very nearly told them about my neurotic best friend and her pages of internet research that means I'm actually packed for a hurricane.

You'd think the rain would be enough to make me move on, but I find it invigorating; like coming up for fresh air after having all my troubles washed away.

I know what you're going to say. Exactly what you would say if you were here: 'this sucks; let's catch a train to Spain and lay on the beach'. There is something magical about the rain though.

It's like the whole world is still first thing in the morning. Today I was up at the crack of dawn watching the fog roll over the Thames and for the first time in a week sunlight broke through the clouds. It glinted off the London Eye and reflected off the fog onto the towering bricks of Big Ben, and I swear London was asleep until that moment.

It was beautiful.

I've attached some pictures that I'm not sure really do it justice.

How was the wedding? I keep waiting to hear from Ric, but he hasn't said anything yet and I didn't want to interrupt the honeymoon.

Was it amazing? I'm sure Jo looked beautiful.

Love you,

Elena.

* * *

**As I said the next handful of chapters will be emails exchanged back and forth. It's not all of the messages she sends and recieves just the important ones.**


	5. Chapter 5

**I do not own TVD or TO.**

* * *

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: historyteacherbydayvampirehunterbynight **

Dear Ric,

Caroline told me about the wedding.

I'm so sorry. I never should have left. Let me know if there's anything I can do, and please, please, please don't go on a drinking binge with Damon.

Love,

Elena

* * *

**FROM: historyteacherbydayvampirehunterbynight **

**TO: egilbert **

Dear Elena,

Thank you.

You made the right decision by leaving when you did. Kai wanted to make Damon suffer and wanted to use you. Leaving Mystic Falls is what saved your life.

And as for the drinking binge with Damon, your plea has come a little too late. we are currently making our way through Germany. Try not to worry; he'll heal me if my liver starts to give out.

Stay safe,

Ric

* * *

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: historyteacherbydayvampirehunterbynight **

Dear Ric,

I assure you that I'm perfectly safe.

It's a shame you didn't inform me where you were sooner. We could have met, but I left Berlin a few days before I got your message.

I don't care if he can heal you; do not try to drink him under the table.

Love,

Elena


	6. Chapter 6

**FROM: theeternalstud **

**TO: egilbert **

Elena,

Where are you? Ric says you were in Berlin. Tell me where you are so we can talk and go home.

Damon

* * *

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: theeternalstud **

Damon,

We said all there was to say. You don't want the cure and I don't want to be a vampire. As for going home… I don't think I have one anymore.

I have no desire to return to the town that took everything from me.

Elena

* * *

**FROM: theeternalstud **

**TO: egilbert **

Elena,

This isn't funny anymore!

Bonnie refuses to do a locator spell.

Jeremy won't say anything.

For the first time in her life Caroline has nothing to say.

And Ric doesn't know.

Where are you?

Damon

* * *

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: theeternalstud **

Damon,

Stop harassing my family!

I don't know if you're compelling Ric, or getting him black out drunk, but stop; I know he's not telling you on his own.

Elena

* * *

**FROM: theeternalstud **

**TO: egilbert **

Elena,

Where are you?

Damon

* * *

**FROM: theeternalstud **

**TO: egilbert **

Elena,

Where are you?!

Damon

* * *

**FROM: theeternalstud **

**TO: egilbert **

Elena,

Where are you?!

Damon

* * *

**FROM: theeternalstud **

**TO: egilbert **

Elena WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?

If you don't tell me in the next two hours I'll be forced to take drastic measures.

Damon

* * *

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: theeternalstud **

Like what?

* * *

**FROM: theeternalstud **

**TO: egilbert **

I'll tell a certain hybrid (with LIMITLESS resources) about your supernatural status.


	7. Chapter 7

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: klausm **

Dear Klaus,

I would have called, but the bill would have been ridiculous. Not to mention the fact that I have no idea what codes to punch in so I can call out of Italy.

There is a long version and a short version of the story, so I'll stick to the short. It boils down to the fact that I'm human again; I won't bore you with the details.

Due to irreconcilable differences I broke things off with Damon and left Mystic Falls. He can't let it go, and is now threatening to tell you everything. Knowing Damon he'll add a colourful spin that basically says I'm trying to outrun you.

I'm not.

The only person I'm running from is Damon.

If you need my blood then tell me and I'll hop the next plane to New Orleans, so you don't need to expend whatever resources you have to find me.

So please don't help Damon if he calls.

Thank you,

Elena

PS: Why are you still using this service? It's one of the worst ones out there.


	8. Chapter 8

**FROM: klausm **

**TO: egilbert **

Elena,

Damon has been told to piss off and been threatened with a toxic wolf bite if he bothers you or me again, so let me know if he does.

Now onto the issue of your blood:

At the moment I've no need of it. As much as an army would help me now it would be more of a hindrance than anything as the wolves are loyal to Hayley and knowing her she would ensure the sire bonds were broken.

The wolves of New Orleans are better use to me as they are. However, if that changes I shall contact you and we'll see if Elijah is right in his defence of your character.

And in regards to my choice of server: I happen to be a very loyal person.

Klaus


	9. Chapter 9

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: klausm **

I think your siblings would disagree with you on that last part.

And thank you, but you could have just ignored Damon.

* * *

**FROM: klausm **

**TO: egilbert **

I couldn't pass up the chance to put Damon in his place.

Also, how dare you question my loyalty?

I should hunt you down just for that.

* * *

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: klausm **

I'm on another continent and pretty sure your outrage will pass before you find time in your busy parenting schedule to hunt me down.

* * *

**FROM: klausm **

**TO: egilbert **

I could always send Rebekah. She's in Europe hunting for a way to bring back Kol.

* * *

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: klausm **

It sounds like she has her hands full. There are ways to come back, so I hope she finds something.


	10. Chapter 10

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: cforbes **

Caroline,

Thank you so much for giving me Klaus' email. I got to nip that right in the bud.

I'm so grateful that I'm not even going to ask why you have it, but I am going to remind you that there are better platforms for your sexting.

We wouldn't want your dirty pictures getting loose because of a faulty mail server.

To answer your previous question Verona was beautiful. I've attached some pictures for you.

Obviously I've moved on. I don't trust Damon not to hack your email. He has done it before.

Someone really needs to show Ric how to change his username back.

Love you,

Elena

* * *

**FROM: cforbes **

**TO: egilbert **

I AM NOT SEXTING Klaus!

I'm not interested in Klaus.

Who's the girl in some of the pictures with you?

There was one where she was undressing you with her eyes.

And I love you too.

Caroline.

* * *

**FROM: egilbert **

**TO: cforbes **

You would recognize the look when someone's undressing you with their eyes. I've seen you give that look to a certain hybrid when you thought nobody was looking.

She's a friend I made along the way, and to save the inquisition when I say friend I mean 'friend'. It's casual, so you don't have to interrogate her.

Save the interrogations for a serious relationship, okay?


	11. Chapter 11

**I do not own TVD or TO.**

**This chapter does contain an explicit scene between two women, and it is the first time that I have written a scene of this kind.**

"We've got the Anne Frank house tomorrow," her voice arose from the corner, "you should really be getting some rest... in bed."

Elena dosed Caroline's latest email and set her laptop aside, running the tips of her fingers along her cotton pyjama pants. The light from the window over her head illuminated the empty space on the mattress and the chipped nail polish that stood out against the sheets; a remnant of the manicure she had given the night they met.

It was unheard of to go clubbing in Berlin without blood red mails.

"If I get in that bed I don't think I'll be getting any rest. "Elena shivered, remembering vividly where those fingers had found a warm home in the club's bathroom; it had been a night of firsts, but not lasts.

"I promise you'll be relaxed," Emma's Scottish brogue strengthened as she sat up and nibbled on her lower lip. "I'll make sure of it."

"We're in a dorm, Em," she cocked an eyebrow.

She had met Emma nearly three weeks earlier in Berlin. Some seedy looking guy slipped something in her drink and Elena had placed her hand of the glass before Emma could knock the liquid back.

Girls had to stick together.

Rebekah said that once during their Thelma and Louise escapade.

Rebekah was the real reason for her trip to Amsterdam. It had taken sometime for Elena to realize she wasn't truly rootless, and to see her own patterns; she looked for witches or travellers in every city she traipsed through. she sought answers. She sought some sort of solution to correct her biggest regrets: Rebekah and Kol Mikaelson. She cure weighed a thousand pounds, dragging her bag down as it waited for items host, but so far she had learned nothing to help Kol; only whispers leading to Amsterdam and a coming meeting with a local witch.

"Yes, Elena," Emma stood from the bed, "we're in a hostile dorm. Do you know how rare privacy is in these hostels?"

"It's November," she raked her eyes over Elena's legs, "and the middle of the night; nobody is coming in here."

Elena watched with darkening eyes as she grasped the hem of her purple top. The t-shirt crept up, revealing inch after inch of freckled skin. Rosy nipples came into view, pebbling in the cold air.

Emma tossed her glossy hair over her shoulders and palmed her own breasts. A crooked finger drew Elena unto her knees.

She rubbed her thighs together, reached out and squeezed the full hips. She leaned closer with a smirk and loved open mouthed kisses over her stomach and up toward her breasts, but she was too tall.

She pushed her hands into the back of Emma's pyjamas and gave her ass a good squeeze before pushing the material to the floor. She nudged her with the tip of her nose to lie down on the icy tiles. With the difference in height taken. care of Elena puked a perf nipple into her mouth. She switched back and forth, worshiping the other woman's breasts until she arched beneath her.

Only when she was a panting mess did she move up and stare into Emma's blue eyes.

It had been strange at first, being with a woman. She hadn't known what to do and the insecurity had made her feel a little awkward until Emma suggested she think about the things she enjoyed. That had made things easier, and the murmured praise had boosted her confidence.

"I can smell you," she whispered. The scent was strong enough to reach her human senses.

Elena leaned down, cupping her cheek before meeting her lips in a hungry kiss. Her right hand slid down Emma's torso, dipping between her parted thighs to cover her wet mound. She felt the moan when she started playing with her clit.

By the time she pushed two fingers into her dripping pussy she was ravaging the other girl's mouth and running her free hand over whatever patch of skin she could reach.

She broke from her lips and started licking and nipping her throat.

"You're close," Elena hummed against her neck; there was a persistent ache between her legs that demanded attention.

Emma's walls began to flutter as Elena committed to finger fucking her friend; her hand plunged in and out again and again into the sopping cunt. Juices splashed up her arm.

"Come for me, Em," she licked the shell of her ear," all over the floor."

She fell apart when Elena crooked her fingers

Elena watched the orgasm shatter over her features. She withdrew her fingers and pressed them to Emma's parted lips, moaning when the digits were sucked clean.

"You know, 'Elena shifted unto her knees, "I don't feel very relaxed."

"You're not lying in bed," she smirked.

"True enough, "Elena giggled. She allowed her to drag her to her feet.

A trail of clothes was marked the path to the bed.

Emma kept her word by taking her place between Elena's thighs, licking until she was a quivering mess.

After her first orgasm they rolled around and traded lazy kisses until Elena switched things up.

She straddled Emma's face and bent until her face was buried in her lover's pussy. Between her thumping heart and Emma's exceptional tongue concentration proved difficult, but she alternated quick flicks, long licks and well timed bursts of suction until they came together.

After they keyed in bed gathering excess juices with their fingers and licking them clean.

"You're leaving me, aren't you?" Emma drew patterns over Elena's bare stomach.

She raked her tangled hair over her shoulder and turned her head so she could see the way Emma's eyes sparkled in the dim light from the street. After the third encounter they had sat down together and both had made it clear that they weren't looking for anything serious; they were traveling companions who happened to share a bed, or as was most often the case in crowded hostels, a shower, and for as long as they were traveling in the same direction they would journey together.

"We both knew what this was," Elena rolled unto her stomach an old propped up on her elbows.

"I know," Emma balanced on her left arm. She placed open mouthed kisses along Elena's shoulder, dragging her fingers down the curve of her spine and murmuring between kisses. "I just hoped our

fun might continue a wee bit longer."

Emma's fingers dipped beneath the sheet and Elena gasped, arching her back.

"You make the sweetest sounds, Elena," she giggled when her bedmate mewled. "Tell me when you're leaving, lass."

"Soon," her hips rose a few inches, "sometime in the next few days."

Emma chuckled and began laying kisses down her spine. Her words came between gentle licks, gliding along Elena's flushed skin to her ear.

"I should have listened to my mother," she sighed.

"What did she tell you? "Elena shuddered as her thighs were separated and her cheeks were parted; Emma's words made her stiffen.

"Never fall for a gypsy,". Emma hummed, "running her tongue through Elena's swollen lips, "they'll break your heart."

She didn't get a chance to respond before the skilled tongue went to work. She could barely remember her own name when that tongue she had grown very fond of began flicking her dit, and when her orgasm washed over her, filling her eager lover's mouth, she knew she was going to miss her companion.

"What was that for? "She collapsed, spent and peered through a bleary eyes.

"I thought I'd get in one last taste before you leave me high and dry," she poked Elena's nose when she caught her dozing. "See," she grinned, "you're already leaving me wanting."

"I'll get you in the morning," she rolled her eyes. Sleep beckoned her like an old friend.

"I'm gonna hold you to that, gypsy," she covered them with a blanket.

"Why are you calling me that?" She mumbled, wondering if perhaps Emma had figured it out, but she was too tired and sated to care.

"Oh you know, "she murmured," a really free spirited person who moves from place to place. You have the soul of a gypsy, Elena Gilbert."

"Maybe I'll grow out of it."

"If you do then look me up," Emma giggled, "we can go and live an idyllic life: white picket fence, 2-5 kids, cul-de-sac..."

"I don't think I'm a white picket fence kind of girl," Elena closed her eyes. She had that life once and no longer saw herself fitting into the lie.

"Alright," she ran her tongue over her teeth. "How about a modern flat in a bustling metropolis? I'll find work somewhere and you can write. Whenever you feel blocked I'll inspire you by making maddeningly passionate love on the balcony."

"Em," she gave her friend a playful push, little more than a nudge.

"I know, I know," she smirked, "we're just friends, but can you honestly tell me that neither life sounds appealing in any way?"

"Go to sleep, Em," Elena smiled. She wasn't quite ready to admit to herself that she couldn't see herself fitting in any version of the future. She was alive, but she was still a doppelgänger and that made her a powerful supernatural tool..

Why bother making plans when they would just go to crap?

Naive teen... orphan... doppelgänger... vampire... human... traveller...

She didn't have a clue how the pieces, or if they ever would.

She didn't know who she was, or what she wanted.

The only thing that had become a little clearer was her sexuality.

~oOo~

She stared at the bookshelf, breath catching in her throat. The worn wood had been encased in clear plastic to protect the material, but it wasn't the faded case that brought tears to her eyes, and it wasn't the narrow set of steps beyond; it was the words printed on the faded floral wallpaper.

'Our hiding place has now become a true hiding place. Mr. Kugler, you see, thought it would be better to place a cupboard in front of our door, (there are searches being carried out for hidden bicycles) but then of course a cupboard on hinges that can open like a door.'

"How frightened they must have been."

Elena glanced out of the corner of her where a young blonde had sidled up beside her. Folding her arms over her chest she examined the curly hair, straight nose and green eyes: a perfect match for the description.

"Terrified," Elena agreed, turning her attention to the wall again. "Afraid of being, or seen. Living in close quarters with so many opposite personalities."

"I think I would have run; tried to find the underground and made my way to America or Canada. What about you?"

"I've..." Elena lowered her eyes, laughing softly.

"I've got a habit of running into dangerous situations head first."

"Even when your life is on the line?"

"If my actions will save the people I love, then yes," Elena rubbed her forearms.

She hummed, pushing her hands into her pockets. "You're nothing like Katherine, are you?"

Elena's head whipped around to the smiling blonde.

"Katherine Pierce had witch contacts through, Europe," she shrugged, "the last one you spoke to happened to be one of them."

"Niamh told you" her arms dropped to her sides.

"Only so I'd know who to look for," she held out her hand. "I'm Lexa."

"Elena," she shook.

"So Elena," she spun so they were facing each other in the narrow hall, "why'd you choose this place? It's kind of depressing."

"Only when you think of it from the end," Elena smiled. "I choose to focus on beginning and the family doing every possible thing to stay alive, and I think about the people who helped them. It reminds me that people are fundamentally good; that beneath everything they want to help each other."

"The people who clung to their humanity when everyone else was abandoning it for money or rations," Lexa inhaled slowly, motioning to the door. "Why don't we get out of here? We can drink a toast to those brave souls who risked their lives, and you can tell me all about the spell you're looking for."

~oOo~

"So," Elena wrapped her fingers around the steaming cider. "Niamh told me you might be able to help." She took a drink, warmth spread outwards from her stomach.

"Bringing back someone lost." Lexa mused, leaning back on her stool. She tilted her head and watched the slow curl of rising steam. "It's not an easy feat, especially now with the collapse of the other side."

"So it can't be done," she hung her head. Guilt weighed down her shoulders.

"I didn't say that, "Lexa ran the tip of her finger around her mug. "Niamh mentioned the man you were trying to save is a vampire."

Elena nodded. lifting her mug.

"Are you in love with him?"

Elena sputtered, spewing cider. She coughed, wiping the sticky cider from her chin. Gasping for breath proved futile though because the moment she got some air it was expelled in a laugh. She couldn't help it; the idea of her and Kol together was hilarious.

"No," she gasped when she could breathe again, "no I'm not in love with him. I'll never fall in love with another vampire."

"Never say never, Elena, "she lifted her mug in salute.

"I'm serious, "she met the blonde's laughing eyes.

"Okay. "Lexa lifted her hands in defeat. "If you're not in love with this guy then why are you doing this?"

"Because," Elena pressed her lips together, "he shouldn't have died. Because his death is one of the few regrets I might be able to do something about. All he did was try to help me... everyone really... and he died for it."

She didn't realize she was crying until a single tear slipped over her cheek.

"You've got a lot of compassion."

"I don't know that I do," she shook her head. "I just know I want to help get him back to his family. Can you help me?"

Lexa inhaled slowly and leaned forward over the table. She held Elena in her eyes for a moment, measuring and coming to a decision.

"There's a witch in Morocco who has a spell, "she whispered, "and it's rumoured to do exactly what you want. She happens to be a distant cousin."

**I have a couple of AUs that I'm plotting at the moment including a Hogwarts one and one involving Mermaids that I'm really excited for.**


End file.
